Hey! I am alive, and I do still see movies. Been busy putting the final touches on the new album, but now that I’m out of the weeds with that, I can write about movies again. 

Oh, I also saw Sherlock Holmes 2 and here is 1 Thing about that movie: it is exactly what you think it will be. And I mean, I dug it. But then, I dug the first one, and I still am comfortable saying I love Guy Ritchie’s style (even loved Rocknrolla), but hey, we’re getting way off topic here. 

As always, 5-pointed movie reviews, no spoilers unless I warn ya. 

1. It seems like the only criticism people could lob at MI:3 was that it was too “TV-ish,” undoubtedly the result of a still unseasoned JJ Abrams taking a big franchise wheel for his first time (a problem he’s undoubtedly remedied since then, with some practice). So with that history, they got maybe one of the most palatable “big movie” guys around to take the helm of MI:4, Brad Bird, which is funny, in the sense that really no matter what anyone says, making a “great” Mission Impossible movie necessitates certain television tropes, with it being one, a procedural-type action thriller, and two, the fact that it WAS A TV SHOW. Regardless, Brad Bird throws big setpiece after setpiece, moving MI:4 along with a successfully satisfying pace, so successful that one could argue that the last action sequence is maybe the least exciting one of the bunch. But the ramp up to that last sequence is a joy to watch, regardless of how cinematic it may strive to be, or how TV-ish it ends up. 

2. Most people accuse MI movies of being largely Tom Cruise vehicles, which well, again, is reality colliding with criticism. There wouldn’t be a MI franchise without Cruise as Ethan Hunt, and for that reason, it will always seem like the team is secondary to the star. MI:4 made a yeoman’s making the team more of a focus, and succeeded in some instances (Pegg in the field), and mildly fizzled in others (Patton’s love/revenge story). It had some more balance, even in the face of this still, and rightfully so being a Cruise vehicle. 

3. There’s been a lot of talk about Jeremy Renner’s ability in being an action franchise star, what with him being the next Jason Bourne and all. But I can’t think of a movie that was made overtly better by making Renner a part of it. The sequence with him in the computer tunnel was one of the best displays of his versatility, able to be serious and funny at the same time. 

4. MILD VAGUE SPOILER: There is absolutely no reason that final twist in the movie was necessary. I’m not even talking about the plotline itself, just the way that Bird tried to punctuate the moment. It fell flat. 

5. I’m on record saying that MI:3 is one of my favorite action movies of all time, and it’s BECAUSE it’s so TV-ish that I love it so much. I felt Abrams kept the pace quick enough, that it was never about emotions or logic, it was about suspense and excitement. It was very much the “stupid tv masses” kind of movie that I love seeing in an action franchise. Bird predictably slowed the pace down and tried his best to infuse it with heart and a soul in all the right places, and while sometimes the movie succeeded wildly, there were definitely times it fell a bit flat. Call me crazy, but I still like 3 the best, even if Ghost Protocol is a pretty great way to spend an evening at the movies.